Letter to Someone Living Fifty Years from Now Poem Analysis Essay Example

The world has been and is currently changing for the present generation and future ones. It isn't for better though, environmental problems that arised from negligence have had catastrophic events ranging from pollution to the environment to the extinction of species. There are many effects environmental issues can have on the Earth's future if not treated correctly. In the poem “Letter to Someone Living Fifty Years from Now” by poet Matthew Olzmann, there is imagery being used to emphasize that if the issues on the planet are not taken care of in the present, then there will be negative consequences in the future.

The figurative device that is used to emphasize the theme throughout the poem is imagery. For example, in stanza two, the author writes “It must seem like [they] sought to leave you with nothing but… the stomachs of seagulls rippled with jet fuel and plastic”(4-6). The vivid image of the stomachs of seagulls with jet fuel and plastic contributes to the theme by describing what may occur if environmental issues on the planet are not taken care of now. By describing a negative image of seagulls in the future, it also helps emphasize how harsh these consequences may be later on if people choose to neglect present problems. In addition, near stanza 5 the author describes how “Absolutely, there were some forests left!Absolutely, [they] still had some lakes!(13-14). By describing the past land with forests and lakes, it contributes to the theme because it shows that because the planet was not taken care of, the future land no longer has forests or lakes. This further contributes to the theme because the description is written in past tense implying that in 50 years humanity lost lakes and forests due to laxity on environmental issues. Furthermore, in stanza 6 the narrator writes “I’m saying, it wasn’t all lead paint and sulfur dioxide. There were bees back then, and they pollinated a euphoria of flowers” (15-17). By describing the future with lead and sulfur dioxide and then describing the past with bees and flowers, the images contribute to the theme by showing that although there might have been bees back then, the planet was not taken care of and negative consequences such as sulfur dioxide occurred.This last use of imagery further contributes to the theme by describing a beautiful past with flowers and bees that was lost and replaced by lead and sulfur dioxide due to not taking care of the planet. In summary, imagery was used at all parts throughout the story to describe 2 worlds in the past and future. to highlight the consequences that may happen on the planet if we neglect it, as the theme stated.

Imagery was used as a figurative device throughout the poem describing life in a future and present to contribute to the theme that if we dont fix our planet now, then in the future there will be negative effects . The comparisons of how life was before and then describing how in the future we might lose animals like bees and elephants is an effective way to show how negative these effects may be. Even though these changes and effects may be close in the future, it is still not too late to fix our issues and in the process help future generations.